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pushing our limits

21 photographers, 14 days, 278 images

By Tineke Ziemer

June 9^th, 2019

Imagine my excitement when 20 other passionate photographers jumped on board my recent 14 Day Portfolio Builder Challenge to push their creative, emotional and technical limits. Artists from the lower mainland, Terrace, central BC and as far away as Prince Edward Island. Some are brand new to photography and some have been creating for years. Some were using fancy cameras and some were using cel phones. It was an amazing mix of people with one thing in common: the desire to create amazing photographs!

Every day I sent out a new challenge to the group with a lot of tips and ideas to inspire their creativity. Over the course of 14 days, we tried new technical challenges on many levels, we dug deep to create emotionally evocative imagery, and we stepped into uncharted territory with unusual subjects. I have to say, I have never been so inspired by a challenge group before. This was a very dedicated group of artists and everyone put out work they can be very proud of.

It gives me absolute pleasure to share some of the amazing images with you! I have had the excruciating task of choosing just a few from each day to share here, but there are many more beautiful images where these came from. If you know any of these artists personally, ask to see their gallery.

My own collection can be viewed in a separate post here.

Enjoy and please leave comments for the artists below or on the facebook post. Setting aside hours to dream up and photograph a new piece of art for 14 days straight was no easy task. I felt like I ran a marathon by the end of facilitating it and doing the challenges alongside the group. We would love to hear your reactions to the images!

#1 - light something on fire

Top to bottom, left to right:

"Try to Set the Night on Fire" - Carissa Boyd
"I Will Not Change" - Laureen Witzke
"May We See Less of This" - Laurie Bare
"To Love Beauty is to See Light" - Sherrylynn Gosselin

#2 - bring a backdrop outside

Top to bottom, left to right:

"Pretty in Pink" - Jodi Duncan
"Leaves" - Michal Fedeles
"Get close to the blooms so you can see them" - Nancy Lilienweiss
"Lilly of the Valley" - Sherrylynn Gosselin
"Them Blommin Apples Trees" - Kathy Philbrook

#3 - represent an emoji

Top to bottom, left to right:

"Bird Bath? Pftt!!" - Sherrylynn Gosselin
"Weary" - Laureen Witzke
"Emerald House" - Shannon Stevens
"Emptiness" - Kathryn Stark

#4 - inside out

Top to bottom, left to right:

"From Whence Cometh the Words" - Christine Halls
"Outside Looking In - Kathy Philbrook
"Caged Dreams" - Donna Davis
"Great Things Begin from the Inside" - Kathryn Stark

#5 - shine a light through something

Top to bottom, left to right:

"Hiding in Plain Sight" - Sherrylynn Gosselin
"A Quiet Evening for Two" - Christine Halls
"Look Me in the Eyes" - Melissa Pollock
"There's No Place Like Home" - Kathryn Stark
"Sunkissed Lattice" - Jennifer Herman
"First Comes Marriage" - Kayla O'Flynn

#6 - A Match Made in Heaven

Top to bottom, left to right:

"The Story of Q&U" - David Webb
"Untitled" - Jodi Duncan
"The Best Match" - Taylor Masters
"Made for Each Other" - Amelie Deyaeger
"The Nuts and Bolts of It" - Christine Halls

#7 - Send a blessing

Top to bottom, left to right:

"Uplifting" - Melanie Dydynsky
"May You Be Safe" - Laurie Bare
"May He Hold You" - Laureen Witzke
"May Your Days Be Many" - Sherry White

#8 - Floating

Top to bottom, left to right:

"Broken Handle" - Shannon Stevens
"Look Deep into Nature" - Donna Davis
"Seeing Clearly" - Christine Halls
"Mmm Watermelon" - Kayla O'Flynn

#9 - Change the colour

Top to bottom, left to right:

"Leaf from a Rare Sprinkle Tree" - Carissa Boyd
"Why fit in when you were born to stand out" - Donna Davis
"Ukulele Rockstar on Tatooine" - Laurie Bare
"Untitled" - Laureen Witzke

#10 - something you are thankful for

Top to bottom, left to right:

"Finding the Beauty in Every Day" - Melanie Dydynsky
"Closeness, Lightness, and Unconstrainedness" - Michal Fedeles
"The Journey is Long" - Melissa Pollock
"My Snake Charmer" - Christine Halls

#11 - utensils & Shadows

Top to bottom, left to right:

"Hold Me Tender" - Michal Fedeles
"Untitled" - Jodi Duncan
"Half of my Heart Takes Time" - Sherrylynn Gosselin
"Shadow Web" - Shannon Stevens
"Untitled" - Nancy Lilienweiss
"Untitled" - Taylor Masters

#12 - I Have a COnfession to make

Top to bottom, left to right:

"i eat Nutella from the jar with a spoon...." - Laurie Bare
"Unbroken (Almost) - Christine Halls
"Just Breathe" - Melissa Pollock

#13 - finding beauty in "junk"

Top to bottom, left to right:

"History Not Repeating Itself" - Amelie Deyaeger
"We Don't Need This" - Kayla O'Flynn
"Clumsy" - Michal Fedeles
"Lighting Up the Past" - Donna Davis

#14 - smoke show

Top to bottom, left to right:

"Magical Beasts" - David Webb
"Smoken Hot" - Kathy Philbrook
"Smokey" - Michal Fedeles
"You're Just a Boy in a Mask" - Laurie Bare

Do you want in on the fun?

As you can tell, we had a lot of fun and were inspired by the amazing ideas within our group. On top of that, I shared tips, motivation, and daily critiques on every image. That's right! 264 images in 14 days! That's where a lot of the learning happened.

If you think you'd like to improve your photography, build your portfolio and enjoy the community spirit of a group challenge, email northernpersona@telus.net and ask to be put on our info list. Every time I run a photography program, I send out the details to those on the list. Judging by the response from this one, we'll be doing more challenges soon!

Thank you for viewing our gallery! Don't forget to comment below. And if you want to see what the instructor created (that's me!) during the 14 day challenge, click here: 14 Days Alone